1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to portable, collapsible heat units which can be interchangeably used as ovens, cook stands, grills, barbecues and heaters.
2. Description of Related Art
In certain environments, such as in outdoor cooking and in catering, it is desirable that a heat unit such as an oven or barbecue be versatile for cooking, be compact when transported and stored, and be durable. Caterers, backpackers, campers, hikers and military personnel find useful such portable heat units. In catering, the food may be prepared in the caterer's kitchen but the food may be served elsewhere. Alternatively, the caterer may wish to cook or barbecue food on-site, thus requiring transportation of an appropriate heat unit to the site.
Heat units typically require a heat source for cooking the food. Such a heat source may be a candle or a fuel can, such as manufactured under the trademark, STERNO, as well as charcoal, wood or gas.
Portable heat units are often expensive to manufacture, and even when robustly made, generally have a limited life due to repeated or rough handling. In camping, the heat unit is exposed to repeated jostling and may be dropped or blown over by wind. Similarly, in mobile catering, the heat units must be transferred from a storage space in the catering kitchen to the catering truck, transported to the catering site and then set up, for example on a buffet table at the catering site. After the catering service is rendered, the process is reversed. Repeated rough handling in this type of environment eventually results in damage to the heat unit.
Heat units of a permanent nature have the advantage of high heat. In contrast, portable heat units typically suffer from extensive heat loss and very often cannot reach sufficiently high temperatures for baking or broiling. Thus, cooking time may be relatively long and the food may be poorly cooked.
Another feature of permanent heat units is that they provide precise control of the cooking process. For example, the cook may control the temperature of an oven or the flame size of a burner on a stove. Both temperature and heat flow are important in cooking, and a permanent heat unit typically provides this. However, portable heat units typically do not allow for control of temperature or heat flow. Thus, food prepared from a portable heat unit may be overcooked, undercooked or unevenly cooked.
Typically, portable units are dedicated to one type of application and are therefore usable only as a cookstand, only as an oven, only as a barbecue or only as a heater. Therefore, what is needed is a heat unit which by means of simple modification not requiring any tools can be used for all of these uses.
It is therefore a first object of the invention to provide an oven, cook body, barbecue and heater unit which can be compactly stored and transported, but which is neither bulky nor prone to damage by ordinary rough handling. It is a further object of the invention to provide a device which is inexpensive and simple to manufacture. It is a further object of the invention to provide a device which can achieve relatively high temperatures, and also which permits control of the temperature and heat flow. These objects and others are provided by the portable heat unit of the present invention.